Friday, October 17, 2014

11 – JUST ONE WORD -- “Grand Canyon Rafting – A Dozen Little Stories”

After dinner
on our final night of camping in the Grand Canyon, Boatman Art gathered all thirty-two
of us with our chairs in a circle on the beach. Our “campfire” was an overturned white five-gallon
bucket with a lantern inside giving it a friendly glow.

Earlier in
the evening, Art had asked us to come up with just one word to describe the
Canyon and our experience. It seems you don't need a
thousand words, after all, to equal the worth of a picture.

"Magnificent" (Tyler)

"Perspective" (Steve)

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"Serene" (John)

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"Surreal" (Joel - with John on left)

"Spiritual" (Marilyn)

"Beauty" (Wayne)

"Grounding" (Eva)

"Love" (Rafter Ray)

"Love" (Ann)

"Sockety" (Art)

"Craggy" (Mary)

"Buckets"* (Paul)

"Humbling" (Tom)

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"Mystical" (Ruth)

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"Friendship" (Tammy)

"Reality" (Rachel)

"Awesome" (Bernard)

"Sacred" (Al)

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"Proof"** (Cindy - with Terry)

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"Cosmos" (Gary)

(Credit: Dell)

"Fulfilling" (Dell)

"Phenomenal" (Debbie - with Steve)

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"Family" (Steve - with Stephanie & Debbie)

(Credit: Dell)

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"Inner peace" (Stephanie)

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"Grateful" (Ann-Marie)

"New experiences" (Den)

(Credit: Dell)

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"Life changing" (Duffy - with Tyler & Dell)

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"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" (Jeanne)

"Art" (Fred)

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"Religious" (Arlene)

(Credit: Dell)

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"Ever changing" (Larry - with Al)

(Credit: Dell)

*Referring to Paul’s unexpected mid-river plunge from the raft as he tried
to rescue an errant bucket floating in the current.

**“Proof that the universe is larger than us. 80 proof liquor.
Proof that 28 people can get along for a week. Proof that I could get over that
ledge to the falls.”

And do it with Grand Canyon Expeditions. They make it easy. They were professional from start to finish. The best thing I can add to my earlier kudos for this company and its staff is this: Throughout our eight-day raft trip, we briefly encountered a dozen or two other groups. I confess that each time I felt a bit superior. Ours had a better raft setup, better group, better guides, better vibe. I couldn't have asked for anything more.